Fire-place and damper



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

S. SHAW.

FIRE PLACE AND DAMPER.

3W1 ewk we Patented Sept. 25, 1888.

Wfimeeeea (NO Mode S 2 SheetsSheet 2.

FIRE PLACE AND DAMPER.

Patented Sept; 25, 1888.

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a on B a cu m UNTTED STATss PATENT Trice.

gAMUEL SHAV, OF NEWTON, MASSAGHUSETTSQ FIRE-PLACE AND DAMPER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 390,040, dated September 25, 1888.

Application filed March 10, 1888. Serial No. 266,789.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, SAMUEL SHAW, of New ton, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Fire-Place Flues and Dampers, of which the following is a specification.

My improvement relates to chimney-fines for open fire-places and the dampers therefor; and it consists in certain new and useful constructions and combinations of the same, substantially as hereinafter described and claimed.

In thedrawings, Figure lie 21. front elevation of a portion of a chimney having an open fire-place provided with my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the same through the line z z of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a horizontal section of the same on the line 00 .r of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is an enlarged top plan view of the archplate throat and damper shown in Fig. 3, detached from the chimney. Fig. 5 is a transverse section through Fig. 4 on the line y y, showing the damper actuating mechanism. Fig. 6 is a front elevation of the same. Figs. 7 and 8 are detail views of parts of Fig. 5.

O is the chimney-flue and F is the fire-place, which are laid up of brick in the usual manner. Instead of forming the throat of the flue of brick, which leads from the fire-place into the chimney, and of attempting to regulate the fire in the fireplace by shutting off the draft below the fire, I form this throat of a single piece of cast metal, B, large enough to have its edges built into the brick-work all around in the shape of a horizontal plate, and with an opening through its center, surrounded upon one side and two ends by an inclined hood, b, projecting upward and inward over this open ing, cast in one piece with plate'B. The space between the other side of the plate B and the exposed edge of the wall 1) forms an opening upward and rearward into the chimney O. The front edge or side of plate B is long and pro- 5 jects at the ends far enough into the brickwork on each side of the chimney to form the supporting-plate of the brick-work over the front of the fireplace, thus supplying the place of the usual iron bar used for that purpose.

The opening bounded by the exposed edge of wall 5 and the uncovered side of the open- (No model.)

ing through plate B is covered by the swinging damper D. This damper is a flat plate, turning upon its lower edge, which rests upon plate B, being held in place by the upright posts E E, which are attached to the top of plate 13, (preferably by being cast in one piece therewith,) with their vertical edges adjacent to damper D, far enough from the opening through plate B to allow the damper to occupy the described position. These vertical edges also serve, when the upper edge of the damper is swung away from the wall I), to limit its swinging movement, as shown in Fig. 5, and keep the lower edge of the damper in place between them and the inclined edges of hood I). In order to keep the damper D in place longitudinally, ears (I (l are attached to its outer face, near the lower edge, so as to project between the post E E and prevent endwise move ment. These ears might, however, project outside of the posts with equal effect. By this construction of the parts I am enabled to open the damper D upward and out of sight, and without allowing soot and ashes,which are deposited upon its upper side from the chimney G, to descend into the fire-place and be scat tered about the room outside of it, and in the action of opening such soot and ashes are do posited in the space above and behind the damper, which is suited to receive and retain these, as it forms a box-like inclosure opening upward, whether the damper be closed or opened. Theinclined hood b also forms a like inclosurcarounditsouterandupperside,which retains the soot and ashes which may drop down. The damper is also, by this construction,

made without any hinge atthe joint between it and the plate B, which is objectionable, because if such a hinge be constructed, even with its pintles only partly embraced by the other member, it soon becomes choked by fine ashes, and the creosote in the soot rusts the joint, so as to disable the damper very speedily. I am also enabled to remove the damper D, to clean out the space over the plate B behind the damper and around the inclined hood I), by simply sliding the damper up on the inclined face of the hood until the ears d d clear the posts E E, and then moving the damper endwise until one end of it will drop through the opening inplate B,when the damper is drawn a head on its outer end.

downward through the opening and taken out of the fire-place. I can also replace the damper by reversing the operation. When the damper is thus removed, all the soot and ashes which have accumulated behind it or the hood I) can be readily brushed down through the opening in plate B by moving them around to the uninclosed side of that opening whence the damper was taken away.

\Vhen the damper is in place for operation, as shown in the drawings, I operate it by the following mechanism: A bracket, 0, Figs. 5, (i, and 7, is bolted onto the lower inclined side of the curbing or bonnet b. This bracket has one member of it bearing upon the curbing b, to which it is bolted, and the other member, in the form of a vertical fin or plate,projecting inward transversely across the space within the bonnet, as shown in Fig. 5. On this latter member of the bracket, which is of metal, is attached an ear, 0, projecting outward from its surface at right angles about an inch, and having its upper edge sharpened to the shape of a wedge, as shown. Below and in front of this ear 0 the lever 0 is pivoted to bracket 0 by pivot 0 on which it swings freely. The lower end of lever 0 has a hole, 0 through it large enough to receive the hook of a poker to move it back and forth, and this end of the lever depends below the front wall of the fireplace sufficiently to be visible, as shown. To the upper end of the lever 0 is attached by a pivot the link at and the curved arm a, both of which swing freely on this pivot. The link 7 extends horizontally to an ear, 0', bolted to the damper D, to which it is connected by a pivot, on which the ear turns. This pivot .9 may be made in any ordinary manner, if desired; but Iprefer to attach it firmly to the ear 1 and have it provided with I then cut a slot, m from the lower edge of thelink m upward to this pivot-hole,Fig. 7,iuclining this slot inward and upward toward the middle of the link, as show u and making it wide enough for the pivot s to just pass through. This enables me to drop the link over the pivot s, or remove it at pleasure by lifting the end of the link, while the inclination of the slot m causes any strain on the link to keep it upon the pivot while opening or closing the damper. This slot m might be used at the opposite end of link on to connect it with its pivot of lever 0 if desired, in substantially an equivalent manner. The damper may now be opened and closed by the lever o and link m, and will remain in its wide-open position, resting against the posts E E, or closed; but in order to hold it partly open and to secure it in its wide-open position more surely I employ the arm a, which drags over the upper edge of the ear 0, as shown, and is caused to press thereon by a weight, a, attached to its lower end. In the lower edge of the curved arm a, I form notches a a with rounded edges to increase its drag or friction upon the ear 0 and more perfectly insure its holding its place upon the ear against the pressure of the damper D. These notches correspond in position and number with the resting places of the curved arm upon ear 0 in the several positions which it assumes when the damper is in its several desired open and partly-open adjustments, and by the weighta the curved arm a is made to lock the damper against its tendency to close itself. If, however, a poker be hooked into lever 0 and pulled or pushed upon, the added strain upon the curved arm it becomes sufficient to overcome the hold of the notches it" upon the ear 0, and the curved arm is dragged over the latter, thus allowing the damper to open or close more or less. The described mechanism is sheltered by the hood Z1 both from above and from being seen outside the fire-place.

When it is desired to remove the damper, the end of the link at is lifted to disengage it from the pivot s and the damper removed, as before described, which is easily and quickly done, to clean out the space above plate B, and the dampermaythen be as readily replaced. The mechanism is not liable to get clogged by falling soot or ashes from the chimney or dis arranged by the warping of the metal by heat, or have its working impaired by rust. as all the joints and pivots may be made so free as not to rust up, all of which qualities are especially important with open fire-places and chimneys where soot and moisture are present constantly and liable to fall more or less upon the working parts, notwithstanding every precaution against them.

Vhat I claim as new and of my invention 1. In combination with the open fire-place F and chimney O, the intervening contracted chimney throat consisting of theinclinedhood b and damper D, forming its opposite faces of pyramidal form and meeting at their apex, substantially as described.

2. The combination of the fire-place F,the chimney O, the intervening horizontal plate B, and the inclined hood I) and damper D, surrounding and covering an opening through the central part of the plate and arranged to leave a space on the plate around the same for the reception of soot and ashes descending thereon and prevent the same escaping into the fireplace, substantially as described.

3. The combination of the chimney C, the fire-place Etheintervenin g horizontal plate B, with a central opening, the inclined hood I), having its side and ends surrounding three sides of the opening and projecting upward, and the damper D, arranged to cover the pas sage formed between the fourth side of the opening and the edges ofhood andto open and close in the chimney over the same, substantially as described.

4. The combination of the fire-plaeeF, the chimney O, the intervening plate B, provided with posts E E, thehood b, forming three sides of a contracted throat between the fireplace ICO and chimney, and the damper D, having its lower edge resting upon plate B between the posts and the hood, and arranged to turn on said lower edge and cover and uncover the passage bounded by the upper edge of the hood and the inner edge of plate B, substantially as described.

5. The combination of the fire-place F, the chimney O, the intervening plate B, provided with posts E E, the hood 12, forming three sides of a contracted throat between the fire-place and chimney, and the damper D, having ears (I d, projecting on opposite sides of posts E E, adapted to prevent longitudinal motion of the damper, the plate being arranged to turn on its lower edge and cover the passage bounded by the upper edge of hood I) and the inner edge of plate B, substantially as described.

6. The combination,with the swinging chimney-damper D, located in the flue above the lower edge of the front wall of the fire-place, of the link on, pivoted thereto,and the lever 0, pivoted to the wall of the fire-place, and also pivoted to the link m, and depending below the front wall of the fire-place, substantially as described I 7. The combination oftheswingingchimneydamper D, provided with lug r and pivot s, the link m, provided-with slot m and the lever 0 pivoted to the link at the opposite end and turning on pivot 0 substantially as described.

8. The combination of the swinging damper D, the link m, pivoted to said damper, the lever 0, pivoted to said link at its opposite end and hung on pivot 0 the weighted arm n, pivoted to the lever, and the fixed ear 0, adapted to engage with the arm, substantially as described.

9. The combination of the swinging damper D, the link m, pivoted to said damper, the le' ver 0 pivoted to said link at its opposite end and hung on pivot 0', weighted arm n, pivoted to the lever and provided with a notch or notches, a in its edge, and the fixed ear 0, adapted to engage therewith, substantially as described.

10. The combination of the damper D, turning in the chimney-throat and arranged to close the same, the lever 0 supported by the fixed pivot 0 and depending into the fireplace, and the link m, pivoted at one end to the damper and at the other end to the lever, and provided with a slot, in, whereby the damper and lever may be detached from each other, substantially as described.

SAMUEL SHAW.

Witnesses:

DAVID HALL RIoE, N. P. OOKINGTON. 

